The Case for Cosmic Modesty

Abstract: Based on the premise that we are not special, Loeb argues for modesty from a cosmi perspective. His "principle of cosmic modesty" imples that both primitive and intelligent forms of life should exist away from Earth, and we should therefore search for them without prejudice. 

Abraham (Avi) Loeb is the Frank B. Baird Jr. Professor of Science at Harvard University. Loeb published 4 books and nearly 600 papers (with an h-index of 92) on a wide range of topics, including black holes, the first stars, the search for extraterrestrial life and the future of the Universe. He serves as Chair of the Department of Astronomy, Founding Director of Harvard's Black Hole Initiative and Director of the Institute for Theory and Computation (ITC) . He also chairs the Advisory Committee for the Breakthrough Starshot Initiative, serves as the Science Theory Director for all Initiatives of the Breakthrough Prize Foundation, and holds the Sackler Senior Professorship by Special Appointment at Tel Aviv University. He is an elected fellow of the American Academy of Arts & Sciences, the American Physical Society, and the International Academy of Astronautics, as well as Vice Chair of the Board on Physics and Astronomy of the National Academies. Within Harvard, Loeb serves on the President's Task Force on Diversity and Belonging and the Provost's Allston Academic Planning Committee. In 2012, TIME magazineselected Loeb as one of the 25 most influential people in space. Click here for Loeb's commentaries on innovation and diversity.  

Center for Relativistic Astrophysics (CRA) Distinguished Lecture Lectures in this series are intended to celebrate advances in astrophysics that challenge the way we understand the universe. Invited lecturers are distinguished researchers and speakers who can tell the story of our universe to a general audience.